Chapter 49

Reina let out a small laugh without realizing it and continued,

“You were going to say thank you, right?”

“I was going to, but I started crying and couldn’t…”

“Then do you think you can do it properly now without crying?”

“Yes, I can.”

Bonita wiped her cheeks with her palms again and walked over to Damian with small steps.

Then she placed both hands over her belly button and bowed politely.

“Thank you very much.”

Damian, who had been flustered by the sudden flood of tears earlier, was caught off guard again by Bonita’s suddenly mature behavior and replied a bit awkwardly,

“Y-Yeah.”

“I’ll work really hard with the sword you gave me and become the best knight in the Empire.”

“No, I said you can’t practice with that sword yet.”

At Damian’s reply, Bonita looked like her whole world had collapsed.

Even though he’d clearly said it just moments ago, Damian strangely felt like he’d turned into the bad guy.

“That sword is too big and too heavy for you. It’ll take a few years before you can handle it. Of course, that’s assuming you keep training diligently without getting tired of swordsmanship.”

“I can do it.”

Bonita blurted out loudly in surprise, then her cheeks flushed red.

She lowered her voice and muttered again,

“…I can do it.”

* * *

The commotion quickly settled down.

When it was explained that Bonita had cried simply because she was overwhelmed with happiness over the gifts, the entire knight order looked at the small child with awkward expressions.

“B-Bonita.”

Estelle called out to her carefully.

Bonita looked at Estelle while holding her gifts close to her chest.

Estelle clutched the bundle of cookies in her hands and swallowed nervously.

Reina realized that Estelle was trying to apologize to Bonita and that she was overly tense.

“Boni, My Lady brought some delicious cookies. Do you want to go eat cookies somewhere else?”

“Cookies?”

“Yes. She picked only the tastiest ones just for you.”

Bonita nodded obediently. She didn’t look displeased at all.

Reina let out a quiet breath of relief.

Damian, who had been listening to their exchange, now smoothly picked up on the situation and summoned the head attendant, instructing them to prepare some light refreshments in the glass garden.

Bonita, holding the doll and sword in her arms, stretched one hand out to take Reina’s hand.

Thud…

The doll and sword slipped from her arms and fell to the floor.

“…”

“…”

Bonita hurriedly picked the gifts back up and reached out again.

Thud…

Once more, the doll and sword fell clumsily to the floor.

At the child’s repeated attempts, everyone else could only watch.

Damian stepped forward carefully.

“…Bonita, would it be alright if I carried them for you?”

“…”

Bonita looked down at the fallen items with a faintly pouty expression.

Damian sensed a quiet stubbornness in the small child.

After a moment of thought, he began,

“…That doll you received looks quite lovely. I thought I’d seen every lovely doll there was, but I’ve never seen one this charming.”

Only then did Bonita lift her gaze from the floor to look at him.

Damian swallowed dryly and picked up the doll with one hand, speaking as he held it up.

“So could you lend it to me for just a moment?”

Bonita slowly nodded.

Lifting the sword would already be difficult for her, and holding both at once was even harder.

‘This is scary…’

Damian glanced down at Bonita.

The child had somehow already picked up the large sword and was hugging it tightly to her small body.

‘She probably won’t give up the sword even if I ask.’

Bonita sneakily checked Damian’s expression, then grabbed Reina’s hand.

Estelle, who had been watching Bonita, carefully took Reina’s other hand.

“…Let’s go.”

Damian led the way with the soft rabbit doll tucked under his arm.

Seeing the cute pink rabbit, Reina thought it strangely suited Damian, even though it felt odd.

Every servant who passed by Damian carrying the doll quietly sucked in a breath.

Then they looked at Reina walking behind him.

Their eyes clearly said, why is His Grace walking around holding a rabbit doll.

Reina could only smile.

Under the sharp and curious stares, they arrived at the indoor garden.

At the table where Estelle, Reina, and Bonita had once sat together, there were now four chairs and four teacups prepared.

Reina seated Estelle and Bonita first, then signaled to Damian with her eyes.

“My Lady, Boni.”

“Yes?”

“Why, Mom?”

When both children turned their attention to her, Reina spoke gently.

“I need to step away for a moment to talk with My Lord… with the Duke. Will you be alright?”

The two children looked a little uneasy.

Not missing their expressions, Damian quickly added,

“I won’t go far. I won’t even leave this greenhouse, so tell me right away if anything happens.”

Only then did they nod hesitantly.

Reina placed the cookies Estelle had brought within the children’s reach, then walked with Damian toward the flower bed in bloom.

Damian spoke.

“So what are you going to tell them?”

“You’re asking even though you know there’s nothing.”

“Well, even if it’s an excuse, I don’t like lying to children.”

Reina lifted the corner of her lips slightly as she watched him answer her lightly.

Damian wasn’t particularly good at jokes.

Still, the fact that he spoke so lightly now was surely because he was thinking of Reina and the children.

Reina was beginning to understand Damian’s clumsy but considerate intentions.

‘Ah, and Boni.’

Thinking of what had happened, Reina recalled that in the original story, one maid who became his pawn had been permanently banished.

She also remembered that there was no mention of an artifact at all in the original story.

“Then may I ask you something?”

“Go ahead.”

“What happened to the maid named Sofia? Was she dismissed like the others?”

Reina asked, then awkwardly looked away and added,

“You might not remember her name.”

After all, there were so many people in this estate, and even for My Lord, it would be hard to remember every name. Reina rambled as if making excuses.

“Does she concern you?”

“A-A little.”

Damian answered as if her muttering didn’t bother him.

“Sofia would’ve been used by the artifact as well.”

Sofia had been the one who treated Reina most kindly when she first arrived at the estate.

When Reina didn’t know the rules of a noble household, didn’t know where laundry was done, or got lost, Sofia always helped her.

Sometimes she even took care of Bonita.

Thinking of her made Reina’s heart heavy.

Damian watched Reina’s expression darken little by little and said,

“It might make you feel worse, but…”

“…?”

“The maid named Sofia wasn’t brainwashed by the artifact.”

“What?”

Damian said with an unhappy look,

“Those controlled by an artifact can’t properly carry out orders once they’re separated from its wielder, even if they don’t fully regain their senses. There are exceptions with extremely powerful artifacts, but this one was very old and on the verge of breaking, so it wasn’t an exception.”

“Then does that mean Sofia did it of her own will?”

“You could say that.”

Damian nodded slightly.

“She approached the Count of her own volition. And Embron gained a pawn who could act even outside his reach, so he assigned her to keep an eye on you.”

Reina’s face hardened.

“So that means…”

That artifact had the power to brainwash people.

But its effect only applied to those near its owner.

Once far away from the artifact holder, its influence disappeared.

“Sofia acted of her own will…”

Reina turned pale, like frost in midwinter.

People remember malice more clearly than kindness. It can’t be helped.

Everyone lives surrounded by countless kindnesses without realizing it, and that’s how they’re able to smile.

Which means.

Those who have lived surrounded by malice remember kindness even more vividly.

“…”

“Reina Botn?”

Reina remembered clearly.

Sofia showing her kindness when she arrived at the estate wearing rags.

Sofia approaching her without hesitation, even when she might have smelled unpleasant.

The image of gentle Sofia overlapped with the Sofia of now.